Reuters US Top
By Maayan Lubell, Alexander Cornwell and Andrew Mills
JERUSALEM/DOHA (Reuters) - If Israel failed to kill Hamas leaders in an air strike on Qatar on Tuesday, it would succeed next time, the Israeli ambassador to the United States said after the operation, which raised concerns it would torpedo efforts to secure a ceasefire in Gaza.
"Right now, we may be subject to a little bit of criticism. They'll get over it. And Israel is being changed for the better," Yechiel Leiter told Fox News' "Special Report" programme late on Tuesday.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with the attack in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday, escalating its military action in the Middle East in what the U.S. described as a unilateral attack that does not advance American and Israeli interests.
The airstrike took place shortly after Hamas claimed responsibility for a shooting on Monday that killed six people at a bus stop on the outskirts of Jerusalem.
The widely condemned Doha operation was especially sensitive because Qatar has been hosting and mediating in negotiations aimed at securing a ceasefire in the Gaza war.
"If we didn't get them this time, we'll get them the next time," Leiter said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has defied global condemnation of operations like the one that struck Doha, extending military operations across the Middle East and severely weakening Israel's Iran-backed enemies since Hamas attacked Israel in 2023.
On Wednesday, Israel struck the Yemeni capital Sanaa, after killing Houthi Prime Minister Ahmad Ghaleb al-Rahwi and other senior figures in an attack in late August.
Witnesses said the Wednesday attack targeted the Houthi defence ministry, while Israeli Army Radio reported that Houthi headquarters and military camps were among the targets.
The Israeli military confirmed it had attacked Yemen in a statement.
The Houthis have attacked vessels in the Red Sea in what they describe as acts of solidarity with the Palestinians since the beginning of the war in Gaza.
LEADER'S SON KILLED IN STRIKE
Hamas said five of its members were killed in the Doha attack, including the son of its exiled Gaza chief and top negotiator Khalil al-Hayya. It said its top leaders survived.
The attack generated a flurry of diplomacy between Arab states.
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Qatar on Wednesday, UAE state news agency WAM reported.
Jordan's Crown Prince Hussein is also expected to visit Qatar on Wednesday, while Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is expected to arrive in Doha on Thursday, an official with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
The visits were a show of regional solidarity with Qatar following the Israeli strikes, the official said.
The European Commission will propose sanctioning extremist Israeli ministers and the suspension of trade-related measures in a European Union agreement with Israel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
The proposals reflect growing EU criticism of Israel's conduct of the war in Gaza and increased pressure on the bloc's executive body to take action.
Germany, one of Israel's staunchest supporters, has taken note of those proposals targeting Israel and will participate in a dialogue about future measures, Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Wednesday.
The Doha airstrike followed an Israeli warning to Palestinians to leave Gaza City, an area once home to about a million people, as it tries to destroy what is left of Hamas.
Residents there expressed alarm the Doha strike might destroy chances for a ceasefire.
MISSILES HIT HIGH-RISE BUILDING
Families, some carrying their belongings on vehicles, donkey carts and rickshaws, continued to stream out of Gaza City along the coastal road in anticipation of a major Israeli offensive.
"Does this mean there is no hope a ceasefire can be reached? I am afraid that now Israel would speed up its occupation of Gaza City," said Um Tamer, 65, a mother of five.
At least 30 people have been killed across the enclave on Wednesday, according to medics.
IMPACT ON CEASEFIRE TALKS UNCLEAR, US SAYS
Asked how the strike would affect ceasefire negotiations, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters:
"The honest answer is, we simply don't know. Hamas has rejected everything so far. They continually reject every offer that's put on the table."
The militant group, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades but today controls only parts of the enclave, on Saturday once again said that it would release all hostages if Israel agreed to end the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza.
Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all of the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering.
The October 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian militant group killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians and 251 were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's military response in Gaza killed over 64,000 people, also mostly civilians, according to local health authorities, and reduced the Palestinian enclave to rubble.
(Additional reporting by Xiuhao and Liz Lee in Beijing, Nidal Al Mughrabi in Gaza and Lili Bayer and Andrew Gray in Brussels, Madeline Chambers in Berlin and Inti Landauro in Madrid; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
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